Big B out of hunger strike mode for Prakash Jha's birthday

Mumbai, Mar 1: Amitabh Bachchan, who plays an anti-corruption crusader on an indefinite strike in "Satyagraha", reportedly went on an actual near-starvation diet so that the scenes in the film appear authentic. But he broke the regime for director Prakash Jha's 61st birthday recently.

The 70-year-old veteran is shooting for the movie in Bhopal. Sources from the location say Amitabh has ceased to even communicate beyond what's necessary.

However, on Feb 27, there was an unexpected break in the Big B's hunger-strike regime for "Satyagraha" when director Prakash Jha turned 61.

It happened at the sprawling Ramlila Ground in Bhopal, where Jha was shooting a mammoth public-rally scene with the Big B on a hunger strike.

A live musical band was also present for the shooting.

Suddenly all work stopped and everyone in the cast - the Big B, Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Manoj Bajpayee and Arjun Rampal, burst into a live rendering of "Happy Birthday" for their director.

Recalling the magical moment, Jha said: "We were shooting a critical public sequence with the entire cast and a live band was also there, when suddenly everyone burst into 'Happy birthday to you' for me. I hadn't told anyone it was my birthday."

"I am not a birthday person at all. I never celebrated my birthday even as a child. So on Wednesday, at first I was embarrassed, and then deeply moved. Not every day do you get Bachchan sahab to sing 'Happy Birthday' with a live band."

Incidentally, in the film, the Big B plays an anti-corruption crusader very similar to Anna Hazare.